7-Eleven Cracks Down on Underage Drinking

High-tech helps 7-Eleven crack down on fake IDs.

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Sometimes people younger than 21will ask strangers to go inside liquor stores and buy them alcohol. That is also illegal.

Young people trying to use a fake ID to get alcohol now have fewer options here in the Bay Area.

7-Eleven announced Monday it will begin using new technology aimed at spotting fake IDs in a flash.

Clerks will scan the 2-D code on the back of a customer’s driver license. The scan will verify the birth date stored on the card as well as the validity of the ID. The new scan will begin in California but will go nationwide soon.

7-Eleven wanted to be clear that the stores will not archive any of the information its clerks scan.

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The company said it paid $1 million to upgrade its registers. A company spokesperson said in a statement that was a "small price to pay to combat the serious nature of illegal under-age sales."

Last year, out of all attempted purchases by minors, only five percent were successful nationwide, according to the convenience store chain. 7-Eleven said while that is the lowest failure rate ever, there is still work to be done.

California's Alcoholic Beverage Control said when it does a minor decoy operation trying to catch store owners selling illegally to minors the state-wide failure rate is between 15 and 20 percent.